Resilient connector and support for frangible bodies



c. w. DAVIS 2,153,533 RESILIENT CONNECTOR AND SUPPORT FOR FRANGIBLE BODI IES File d Jan. '27, 1956 Aim] 11 1939.

v mvsmon CORTLAND DAV/.5

Patented Apr. 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT orrlca RESILIENT CONNECTOR AND SUPPORT F FRANGIBLE BODIES Application January 2'1, 1936. Serial No. 61,006

4 Claims.

My invention pertains to connectors for attaching bodies of frangible material, for example, glass bowls of oil lamps, to bases, and consists of a connector stamped and formed from thin sheet 5 metal, having a first and upwardly extending flange of relatively large diameter, for attachment to the oil-holding vitreous bowl of the lamp, a second and downwardly extending flange of relatively small diameter, for attachment to the upper end portion of the lamp base, and a flat annular diaphragm extending horizontally from the lower end of said first flange to the upper end of said second flange, said diaphragm being of substantial width radially, and, when conl5 nected for use with the lamp bowl and base, being free from restraint by any of the parts of the complete lamp, excepting at its outer and inner flanged edge portions. As a result, the airnular diaphragm is free to flex or bend under impacts or shocks exerted on either of its flanges by correspondingimpacts or shocks on the bowl or base as the case may be, thus avoiding the communicating of resultant impacts or shocks through said diaphragm to the other of said flanges, that might be dangerous to the part of the lamp connected therewith.

The bowls of lamps of the kind referred to, are usually made of glass or vitreous material by blow, ing, and consequently are not provided with 3 thicker walls than required to give them stability when properly used. They are, therefore,

. relatively frangible and easily broken by impacts and shocks, which produce greater strains in their structure than result from the proper use 35 of the lamps, whether said impacts and shocks are exerted directly on the bowls, or on bases usually rigidly secured to the bowls. Further- ,more, the bases of the lamps even when made of vitreousmaterial, are of more rugged construc- 40 tion than the bowls, and where the bowls and bases are rigidly connected, the bowls are the parts that are damaged by dangerous impacts and shocks, whether they are exerted on the bowls orthe bases.

45 By my invention the bowl of the lamp has a cushioned connection with the lamp base, which is .sufliciently flexibleand resilient to protect the bowl from damage, thereby avoiding the dangers of such damage or breakage, whether the im- 50 pacts and shocks protected against are primarily exerted on the bowl or on the base.

, My invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawing illustrating a preferred embodiment thereof, in which-- 56 Fig. =1 illustrates in vertical, central, sectional view an oil lamp in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 shows in a view similar to Fig. 1 and to enlarged scale the connector construction I employ between the bowl and the base of the lamp, 3 and Fig. 3 is a plan view of the connecting device removed from the remaining-parts of the lamp structure, this view being toa scale larger than that of Fig. land smaller than that of Fig. 2. 10

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

As shown in Fig. 1, my lamp construction consists of a bowl In of glass or other vitreous material, having an opening in its upper portion pro- 15 vided with a threaded collar I l to receive a burner in the usual manner. The bowl ill has an annular extension Illa projecting downwardly from its. bottom wall and engaged by my connecting device l2 which also engages the upper end portion '80 I311 of the lamp base l3, which may be of any desired material, for example, glass or other vitreous material.

As more clearly shown in Fig. 2, the connecting device I2 consists of a unitary sheet metal stamp- 25 ing of thin and preferably resilient metal, for example, sheet brass, having an inner and downwardly extending flange l2a, an outer and upwardly extending flange IN), and a horizontally disposed annular diaphragm I20 connecting the upper end of the flange 12a with the lower end of the flange l2b. Said flanges preferably have screw threads formed in them to engage similar screw threads on the base portion Mia and the bowl portion Illa. The lower end portion of the flange l2a is flared outwardly at l2d below the screw threads in said flange, to seat tightly against a similarly shaped surface l3b on the base it, when the flange IZa is screwed tightly 0n the upper threaded portion |3a of the base. The up- 40 per edge portion of the flange IZb is flared outwardly below the bowl i0, and has secured to its outer edge, the upper edge of a shell ll of thin sheet metal, by folding the edge -of the shell around the flared edge of the flange I22) as shown at Ma, which shell surrounds the connecting de-= vice l2 and is for decorative purposes, having no part in the functioning of said connecting device as a cushioning means connecting the bowl and the base of the lamp. The lower portion of the shell H is curved inwardly and downwardly to a position closely adjacent the lower edge of the lower flared portion l2d.of the connecting device, and the lower edge of said shell has a short flange Mb extending inwardly therefrom under but free from the edge of said portion I2d, the inner edge of said flange Mb being a loose flt on the adjacent portion of the base I3, so that said shell may move freely vertically relatively to the edge of the portion l2d, when the annular.

diaphragm is flexed in cushioning the bowl II) from the effects of impacts and shocks exerted either on the bowl or on the base. When the flange I2!) is screwed on the threaded bowl extension Illa, the folded portion I4a seats against the under surface of the bowl I0 just outside of its extension Illa, to limit the movement of said flange on said bowl extension when said parts are tightly screwed together. For this condition, and with the flared portion I2d tightly screwed against the seat I312, the flange MD has the relation to the lower edge of the portion I2d and to the base I3, above described, and the annular diaphragm I2c is preferably unstressed. Suitable cement I6 is preferably placed on the screw threads as indicated, before screwing the parts together, to compensate for any irregularities in the screw threads on the bowl and base extensions and to permanently hold or look the parts together.

The lower wall lob of the bowl extension Illa, preferably has a flat and horizontally disposed lower surface,which lower surface is substantially parallel with the annular diaphragm I20 and preferably sufficiently spaced from said diaphragm, so that said lower surface will not have restraining contact with said diaphragm for any flexing of said diaphragm resulting from impacts and shocks that may usually be exerted either on the bowl or on the base of the lamp. To insure that the wall lIIb shall not have dangerous contact with the base at any time, the annular diaphragm I20 is located in a. plane which is substantially above the upper end surface of the extension I3a of the base. This leaves an annular space in the upper portion of the flange I2a, in which, if desired, a disk I5 of resilient material, for example, paper stock of loose texture, may be disposed, supported by the extension I3a, the plane of the upper surface of said disk if used, being substantially in the plane of the upper surface of the diaphragm I2c. The disk I5 may thus constitute a resilient buffer for engagement by the wall IDb, when and if the bowl or base is subjected to extreme impacts and shocks, thus preventing even under such extreme conditions, direct and dangerous impacts against the bowl wall IIlb, the clearance between the disk and the wall lob being preferably sufficient so that these parts do not make contact with each other for any usual impacts or shocks that may be. exerted either on the bowl or on the base of the lamp. The disk I5 may also serve the further purpose of carrying advertising or other reading matter on its upper surface, which may readily be read through the bowl I0, when said bowl, as is usually the case, is made of transparent glass.

It will be observed, that the diaphragm I2c of my connecting device, may flex or bend freely at any place that may be necessary to cushion or relieve impacts and shocks either on the bowl or on the base of the lamp, such, for example, as lateral or' downward impacts on the bowl, setting the lamp down too violently, or tipping-the lamp over. Where the bowl and the base are rigidly connected, as has heretofore been the common practice, impacts on the bowl readily produce dangerous strains in the bowl at said connection, because of the necessity of reactive movement of the base to avoid such strains, and because of the inertia of the base preventing such reactive movement in time to avoid the development of said strains. Again, with such rigid connections, impacts or shocks on the base are immediately communicated to the connected part of the bowl, due to the inertia of the bowl and attached parts, either because in some cases, it is impossible for the bowl and attached parts to acquire the movement of the base immediately, when the base is abruptly moved by the impact or shock, or in other cases, because it is impossible for the bowl and attached parts to stop moving immediately, when the base is in motion and its movement is abruptly stopped by the impact or shock, thus in either event developing dangerous strains in the bowl connection that usually crack or break the bowl.

The disadvantages of such rigid connections are overcome by my invention, by permitting relative movement between the bowl or other supported body and the connected base, and at the same time building up a force in the connection, opposing the movement due to the impact or shock, which prevents the development in the bowl connection of dangerous strains due either to the inertia of the base, or of the bowl and its attached parts.

It will be understood that the size and construction of my connecting device depends upon a number of factors, for example, the weight of the bowl and attached parts, the relation of the diameters of the connector flanges to each other, and the thickness, material and temper of the metal .of which the connecting device is made. While it is impossible to lay down any rule for constructing the connecting device that will cover all cases, a single instance of practical construction may serve as a guide. In this instance the lamp was of medium size, the bowl flange had a diameter of about 2% inches and the base flange of the connecting device had a diameter of about 1 inches, making the radial width of the diaphragm a little over half an inch. The size of the bowl and base were in proportion, substantially of the size shown in Fig. 1. The connecting device was made of sheet brass of medium temper or hardness, somewhat less than of an inch thick. With this construction, the assembled lamp structure was' dropped in upright position, a distance of three feet upon a floor, and the impact of the base striking the floor did not injure the bowl in any way. Repeated tests showed the same results. On the other hand, when similar bowls and. bases rigidly connected in a manner heretofore considered good practice, were similarly dropped, the result invariably was the breaking of the bowl.

In addition to its above advantages, my improvedconnecting device, which, if desired, may be employed to give equally effective cushioned support to other frangible bodies than lamp bowls, is inexpensive to construct.

While'I have shown my invention in the particular embodiment above described, I do not limit myself to that exact construction, as I may employ equivalents known to the art at the time of the filing of this application, without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a construction of the class described, the combination of a frangiblebody having a support-engaging portion, a base having its upper end near and spaced from said support-engaging portion, and a. single connecting device solely and iii iii

resiliently supporting said body on said base and comprising a diaphragm in a plane crossing the axes of said body and said base and spaced members extending from the plane of said diaphragm and rigidlyconnected respectively with said support-engaging portion and said base to support said body on said base, said diaphragm being flat and free to flex between said members and having a substantial extent between said members making said diaphragm a shock-protecting support for said frangible body.

2. In a construction of the class described, the combination of a frangible body having a support-engaging portion, a base having its upper end near and spaced from said support-engaging portion, and a single connecting device solely and resiliently supporting said body on said base and comprising a diaphragm in a plane crossing the axes of said body and said base and spaced mem bers extending from the plane of said diaphragm and rigidly connected respectively with said support-engaging portion and said base to support said body on said base, said diaphragm being flat and free to flex between said members and having a substantial extent-between said members making said diaphragm a shock-protecting support for said frangible body, said members having threaded engagement respectively with said support-engaging portion and said base.

3. In a construction of .the class described, the combination of a frangible body having a support-engaging portion, a base near and spaced from said support-engaging portion, a device connectingsaidbodytosaidbasecomprisingadia-' phragm in a plane crossing the axes of said body and said base and spaced members rigidly connecting said diaphragm with said support-engaging portion and said base to resiliently support said body on said ,base, said diaphragm being flat and free to flex between said members and having an extent between said members making said diaphragm a shock-protecting support for said frangible body, and a shell around said device, one end of said shell being connected with said device and its other end being free to move relatively to said connecting device.

4. In a construction of the class described, the combination of a frangible body having a support-engaging portion, a base near and spaced from said support-engaging portion, a device connecting said body to said base comprising a diaphragm in a plane crossing the axes of said body and said base and spaced members rigidly connecting said diaphragm with said support engaging portion and said base to resiliently support said body on said base, said diaphragm being flat" and free to flex between said members and having an extent between said members making said diaphragm a shock-protecting support for said frangible body, and a shell around said device, one end of said shell being connected with said device and its other end being free to move relatively to said connecting device, said members having threaded engagement respectively with said support-engaging portion and 'said base.

CORTLAND W. DAVIS. 

